Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 12, 2026

Isolation of Primary Mouse Hepatocytes for Nascent Protein Synthesis Analysis by Non-radioactive L-azidohomoalanine Labeling Method
Published on: October 23, 2018
Gut-to-brain signaling restricts dietary protein intake during recovery from catabolic states
Nikolai P Jaschke1, Joseph R Luchsinger2, Zuojia Chen3
1Department of Immunobiology, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Department of Internal Medicine (Rheumatology, Allergy, and Immunology), Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Department of Medicine I & III, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany; Hamburg Center for Translational Immunology, Hamburg, Germany.
Abstract:
Dietary needs are dynamic, with optimal ranges for nutrients varying over time and across physiological states. How optimal nutrient set points are established and why they are adjusted remains largely unknown. In our efforts to understand the physiology of recovery, we made the surprising observation that mice restrict protein intake at the expense of caloric supply. We identified three amino acids-glutamine (Q), lysine (K), and threonine (T)-within dietary protein, which are necessary and sufficient for protein aversion during recovery from catabolic states. The anorexigenic effects of QKT are driven by ammoniagenesis in the gut, sensed by enterochromaffin cells in a TRPA1-dependent fashion and transduced to brainstem neurons via serotonin signaling, inducing anorexia. We propose that this mechanism serves as a first-line defense against ammonia toxicity. In summary, we identified a set of adaptive food preferences during recovery ("recovery behavior"), with implications for understanding diseases of pathologic recovery and the development of therapeutic interventions deployed to enhance recovery.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Overview of Protein Metabolism
Amino acids play various roles in the body once they are absorbed into cells. They are restructured...
Regulation of Food Intake
Metabolic States of the Body: Fasting and Starvation
Proteins: Dietary Sources and Requirements
Metabolic States of the Body: The Postabsorptive State
Initially, glycogen stored in the liver is broken down to release glucose into the bloodstream, while glycogen in the muscles is broken down to supply glucose for energy directly within the muscle cells. As glycogen stores diminish,...
Amino Acid Catabolism

